20th.

Mr. Deane,1 of Falmouth preach'd here this day, in the forenoon from Matthew. XI. 29. Take my
yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart; and ye shall find
rest unto { 80 } your souls, and in the afternoon from Luke XVI. 31. And he said unto him, If they
hear not Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded though one rose from
the dead. A whining sort of a Tone was employ'd by Mr. Deane, which would have injured
the Sermons if they had been good.

For what's a Sermon, good or bad

If a man reads it like a lad,

but Mr. Deane's Sermons, were not hurt by his manner of speaking them.

21st.

We recite this week, and the next to Mr. Read; The juniors have now a leisure week;
Mr. Hale having resign'd, and no other tutor being chosen in his stead. Every tutor
when he resigns his office, has a right to nominate a person, for his successor; Mr.
Hale nominated Mr. Paine the former Butler but they say he is too Popular among the
scholars, to be chosen, there are four other gentlemen in nomination, three of whom
(Mr. Abbot, Mr. Burr, and Mr. Webber) are his Class mates. The other Mr. Prescott,
was in the Class before him.1

This afternoon after Prayers Charles read the Customs2 to the Freshmen in the Chapel: they are read three mondays running in the beginning
of every year, by the three first in the Sophimore Class, who are ordered to see them
put in execution, immediately after prayers. The two Classes went out to have their
wrestling match, a Custom which has for many years been established here. From 6 o'clock
till twelve they were constantly at the work. They went on so close that the two Champions
of each Class were fresh to take hold; but in less than five minutes Mitchell, the
Sophimore, threw Babbitt and Fay, the Freshmen hero's. The Sophimores then set up
a cry for three or four minutes, which resounded through the Colleges, for the Classes
here make it a matter of great consequence.

1. Jonathan Burr was eventually appointed to this position. Samuel Webber was chosen
to replace another tutor, Nathan Read, in Aug. 1787, and two years later was made
Hollis Professor of Mathematics and of Natural and Experimental Philosophy, succeeding
Samuel Williams, who resigned in disgrace; he held that po• { 81 } sition until elected president of the college (in preference to Eliphalet Pearson)
in 1806 (NEHGR, 35:289–290 [July 1881]; entry for 23 Aug. 1787, below; Morison, Three Centuries of Harvard, p. 190).